Impulse counter

ABSTRACT

An electromagnetically operated impulse counter comprising a casing, numeral wheels disposed within said casing and freely mounted on a bearing shaft, releasable transmission means for operatively interconnecting said wheels, heart cams associated with said wheels and provided with a control lever for resetting the counter to zero, an electromagnet rigidly fixed to said frame, a moving armature for cooperating with said electromagnet at each current impulse, an escapement anchor which is pivotally coupled to said armature, the first numeral wheel being provided with a toothed escape wheel for cooperating with said escapement anchor which is so shaped as to permit the free rotation of the first numeral wheel and of the escape wheel when said anchor is brought by the zero resetting control lever into a position located between the two end positions thereof.

United States Patent 51 3,660,642 J ullien-Davin [4 1 May 2, 1972 [54]IMPULSE COUNTER Primary Examiner -Maynard R. Wilbur [72] Inventor. JeanJullien Davin, Valence, France Assistant Examiner joseph M The, Jr. [73]Assignee: Crouzet, Paris, France Attorney-Holman & Stern [22] Filed:Mil. 10, 1970 ABSTRACT [2!] Appl. N03 18,046 An electromagneticallyoperated impulse counter comprising a casing, numeral wheels disposedwithin said casing and free- [30] Foreign Appncmon Priority Data lymounted on a bearing shaft, releasable transmission means foroperatively interconnecting said wheels. heart cums as- Mar. 14, l969France ..6907796 sociated with said wheels and provided with a controllever for resetting the counter to zero, an electromagnet rigidly fixedto {52] U.S. Cl ..235/92 C, 235/92 R, 235/l44 HC said f m m ing m re foop rating wi h sai elec- [51] Int. Cl. ..G06m1/30 tromasnet at eachcurrent p n p m m nch r [58] Field of Search ..235/92, 144 l-lC which ispivotally coupled to said armature, the fi numeral wheel being providedwith a toothed escape wheel for [56] Refermm Cited cooperating with saidescapement anchor which is so shaped as to permit the free rotation ofthe first numeral wheel and of UNITED STATES PATENTS the escape wheelwhen said anchor is brought by the zero resetting control lever into aposition located between the two 3,053,441 9/1962 Vroom ..235/l44 HC endpositions thereofi 2,980,329 4/1961 Hoffmann ..235/l44 HC 3,321,1345/1967 Sigl 235/144 HC 2 Claims, 18 Drawing Figures P'A'TENTEDMM 21972FIG.5 4 1 3 PATENTEDMAY 2 I972 SHEET 3 UF 5 FIGS P'ATENTEDMM 2:912

sum u 0 5 660,642

FIG. 10a FIG. [0b

FIG. Ila

sum 5 OF 5 660 642 PATENTEDMY 2 I972 FIG. 14

IMPULSE comma" This invention is directed to an electromechanicalimpulse counter with zero resetting whichis of very small'overall sizeand can be constructed in large-scale production under particularlyeconomic conditions of capital-expenditure.

In counters which are at present known, the control system comprises anelectromagnet for attracting an armature which is fixed on a rocking.bridge and the alternating motion of which is transmitted to a'ratchet-and-pawl system so that a step-by-step movement of rotation isthus obtained. This stepby-step movement is transmitted by means of asecondary pinion to a gear-Wheel-which is usually integral with thegraduated numeral wheel of the lowest order (units). Transmission to theother numeral indicating wheels is carried out in a wellknown manner bymeans of secondary pinions' which are mounted coaxially on a shaft.

In the case of resetting to zero, a pressure applied to an articulatedlever has the effect in a first stage of di'sengagingthe secondarypinions and locking these latter against a fixed component in order tomaintain them in a suitable angular position and, in a second stage, ofresetting the numeral wheels to zero by means of the well known heartcam system.

In order to carry out these functions, counters of existing types arecomposed of a large number of parts which entail costly operations ofmachining or assembly such as dowelling, insetting, riveting, screwingand so forth.

The present invention is directed to the novel industrial product whichis constituted by a manual-reset impulse counter ascharacterized by adesign concept which permits of particularly economical large-scalemanufacture by virtue of a reduction in the number of components,

ease of machining of said components, i

a structure which consists only of free assemblies and in which suchoperations as riveting, dowelling, insetting, screwing and the like aredispensed with.

Moreover, the reduction in the number of parts and the simplicity ofdesign of such parts make it possible to construe counters which are ofvery smalloverall size.

I This invention is also characterized inthat the alternating motionderived from thepulse istransmitted directly and therefore without anyintermediate pinion to the first numeral wheel;

the zero resetting mechanism is so arranged that it is possible by meansof a single operation to obtain the disengagement of the feed mechanism;the disengagement of thesecondary pinions and locking of these latterand zero resetting of the numeral indicating wheels by means of a heartcam.

All these properties will be clearly brought'ou't'by the followingdescriptiomreference being made to the accompanying drawings, inwhichFIG. 1 is a view in elevation of the assembled-apparatus, the casingbeing shown in cross-section'along t helineI I-ofFIG;

FIG. 2 is aprofile view of the samezappara'tus, the casing "being'shownin cross-section along the line TII- III-of FIG. '1

FIG. 3 is a profile view ofthe'cage of the apparatus FIGS. 4 and 4a aretwo views at'right angles to each other and showing the 'componentwhichperforms the-function of spacer'member andwheel locking member FIG. Sisa sectionalview'ofthecoilIformer; FIG. 6 is a transversesectional'viewof-the'casing of the apparatus push-lever; prior tozeroresett ing FIG. 13, shows the arrangement of the anchor and of thepush-lever after disengagement of the secondary pinions and finally, I

FIG. l4shows the arrangement of the push-lever and of the heart cams atthe moment of zero resetting.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show very clearly the compactness of a counter asconstructed in accordance with the invention and comprising five,numeral wheels.

In the exemplified embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, the dimensions of theapparatus are only 33 X 22 mm in body section and 48 X 24 mm in the caseof a projecting front face and conform to recommended standards. Amongother advantages, the apparatus can consequently be readily built-in andfixed on standard supports by means of the front face.

The apparatus comprises a cage 1 formed of magnetic metal. This cage hasthe double functionof supporting the mechanism and of serving at thesame time as a stationary magnetic armature. Said cage is usually formedby folding and has the shape of a U, the two arms of which have atendency to converge. The spacing of the arms is maintained by means ofa spacer member 2 whose extremities in the form of a tenon are intendedto engage in an easy fit in two rectangular slots in of the cage 1. i

The cage 1 is intended in the first place to support the coil, themolded former of which in turn carries the connecting ter minals and themagnetic core. The coil former 3 of molded material is illustrated inFIG. 5. A slot 3a is formed at the base of said former so that thislatter may be moved by sliding over the base 1d of the cage 1. Themagnetic core of the coil is first inserted into the coil and maintainedwithin this latter in a longitudinal position by that portion of itsmachined extremity which is applied against the portion 3d of the coilformer while theopposite extremity of the core is applied against thebase 1d of the cage 1 (as shown in FIG. 2). The complete assembly isfixed in position by means of the casing 5 which is provided with tworelatively displaced slots 5a and 5b while the coil former 3 is providedwith two lugs 3b, 30. his apparent from FIG. 2 that the two lugs 3b, 3care capable of engaging respectively in the slots 5b 5a. Theelasticityof the casing wallspermitsthe deformation of the casing inorder that this latter may slide over the two lugs at the time offitting in position. The lug 3c is additionally provided with. aninclined face so as to facilitate the engagement of the casing and thedeformation of its wall. e

The constructional details of. the moving armature 6 are shown in FIGS.7 and 8. I v One extremity of the armature is provided with two tenons6a 6b which are adapted to fit into two openings lb and 1c of thecage 1. A sufficiently easy fit is provided in order that the armatureshould be permitted to oscillate as shown by the arrow F in FIG. 7. Theextremity 6c of the armature 6 is adapted to fit into an opening 7a ofthe feed anchor 7 which .pivots about the shaft 8.

;tremity 6c of the moving armature 6 is intended to engage.

As is apparent from FIGS. 7 and 9; the edges of the elongated slot'7a.are convex both in the longitudinal direction and inthe transversedirection, thereby permitting a free articulationlbetweenthearmature 6and the anchor 7.

Another'remarkable feature of the apparatus is the simplicityv of thefeed mechanism which will be described hereinafter.

The anchor 7 to which the impulse movement is applied is acted upon by aspring 13 and, and the action of the same spring, in turn urges thearmature 6 to the initial position which-is remote from theelectromagnet.

The anchor '7 provides a direct drive to the first numeral indicatingwheel 11 (shown in FIG. 10) which is cast in one piece with the escapewheel llacSaid indicating wheel is also cast in one piece with the heartcam 11b which will serve for zero resetting.

Adistinguishing feature of the anchor 7v lies in the fact that theanchor pallets7btand 7c are suitably spaced so that, when the anchor ismaintained in an intermediate position, the escape wheel is capable ofrotating freely and thus permits resetting of the first numeral wheelwhich is integral therewith.

Another feature of the apparatus is provided by the mechanism forresetting to zero. This operation can be carried out by means of anon-articulated push-lever 12, one example of construction of which isillustrated in FIG. 1 1.

The function of this lever is explained hereinafter with reference toFIGS. l2, l3 and 14.

FIG. 12 illustrates the apparatus which has carried out a recordingoperation and in which the counter is ready to be reset to zero.

The anchor is maintained in the position which is shown in the drawings(the anchor pallet 7b being in the engaged position) under the action ofthe spring 13.

The extremity of the push-layer 12 projects outside the casing 5 inorder to permit the application of manual pressure, for example.

Said lever is adapted to slide within a slot 50 (as shown in FIG. 6)which is fonned in such a manner as to permit the inclination of thelever in the direction which is shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 under theaction of the force F.

The face 12b of the lever 12 is intended to rest on a cylindrical sleeve14 which is freely mounted on the shaft 9 of the secondary pinions.

Said shaft 9 is rotatably mounted in two holes of the cage 1 which arein the form of elongated slots 1e and 1f, with the result that the shaft9 can be set in two end positions, one of which permits the engagementof the secondary pinions with the teeth of the numeral wheels while theother end position permits both the disengagement of said pinions andthe free rotation of all the numeral wheels for the purpose ofsubsequent resetting of these latter to zero.

In the disengaged position, the secondary pinions will be locked againstthe spacer member 2 in order to maintain the angular position-setting oftheir teeth with respect to that of the numeral wheels.

In order to carry out the resetting operation, a pressure is exerted onthe outer extremity of the lever 12 in the direction of the arrow F (asshown in FIG. 12).

Inasmuch as the rear face 12a of the lever is applied against the wallof the casing, said lever will necessarily be inclined at an angle asshown in chain-dotted lines in FIG. 12 by reason of the fact that theguide face 12b has rolled on the periphery of the sleeve 14 under theaction of pressure which continues to be applied to the lever, the guideface 120 will come into contact with the sleeve 14, with the result thatthe lever is inclined at a progressively larger angle of slope until, ina first stage of its movement, the guide face 12d comes into contactwith the cam 11b. In this position, the cam and the numeral wheel whichis integral therewith can no longer rotate since the anchor 7 is stillin the initial position of FIG. 12 and the escape wheel is locked inposition by the engaged anchor pallet 7b.

As pressure is maintained on the lever 12 and transmitted to the shaft 9by means of the sleeve 14 against which the guide face 120 is applied,so the shaft 9 will be displaced while causing the disengagement of thesecondary pinions and locking of these latter against the spacer member2, as shown in FIG. 13. At the same time, the sleeve 14 which is appliedagainst the shoulder 7d of the anchor 7 will cause this latter to swingthrough an angle such that the two anchor pallets 7b and 70 will bedisengaged from the escape wheel, thus permitting the rotation of theassembly consisting of cams and numeral wheels.

At this moment, the shaft 9 comes into end-of-travel abutment and thepressure exerted by the guide face 12d on the cam 1lb will cause thislatter to rotate up to the position corresponding to zero resetting asindicated in FIG. 14.

As soon as the pressure F is no longer applied, the shaft 9 is returnedto its initial position by the spring 15. The secondary pinions whichhave been locked in a suitable position engage once again with the teethof the numeral wheels while the lever 12 is thrust back to the initialposition b means of the spring 16 since the anchor 7 15 then release thespring 13 returns it to the initial position as shown in FIG. 12.

In the apparatus according to the invention which comprises a pluralityof numeral wheels, each wheel is provided with its'own heart cam whichis intended to be actuated by a lever element having a shoulder 12d.These elements are disposed in a comb-tooth arrangement FIG. 11illustrates a preferred form of construction of a push-lever which isformed in one piece by molding.

. Iclaim:

1. An electromagnetically operated impulse counter comprising a casing,numeral wheels disposed within said casing and freely mounted on abearing shaft, releasable transmission means for operativelyinterconnecting said wheels, heart cams associated with said wheels, anelectromagnet rigidly fixed to said casing, a moving armature forcooperating with said electromagnet at each current impulse, anescapement anchor which is pivotally coupled to said armature and soshaped as to permit in a predetermined position the free rotation of thefirst numeral wheel, a non-articulated zero resetting control pushlever,said lever being provided with a plurality of juxtaposed teeth incooperating relation with the said heart cams and provided with twolateral anns which are integral therewith and adapted to cooperate witha secondary shaft carrying transfer pinions, the complete assemblymaking it possible against the action of a spring and under the actionof a single manual pressure on said push-lever in a first stage toeffect the disengagement of the transfer pinions and to maintain saidpinions in an angular position, in a second stage to release said firstnumeral wheel by positioning said escapement anchor in a position inwhich it permits the free rotation of said first numeral wheel, and in athird stage to bring the heart cams to the zero position while there-engagement of the anchor and of the transfer pinions is carried outat the same time when pressure is no longer applied to the push-lever.

2. An impulse counter according to claim 1 which includes a toothedescape wheel integral with said first numeral wheel and directlyactuated by said anchor for moving the said first numeral wheel.

1. An electromagnetically operated impulse counter comprising a casing,numeral wheels disposed within said casing and freely mounted on abearing shaft, releasable transmission means for operativelyinterconnecting said wheels, heart cams associated with said wheels, anelectromagnet rigidly fixed to said casing, a moving armature forcooperating with said electromagnet at each current impulse, anescapement anchor which is pivotally coupled to said armature and soshaped as to permit in a predetermined position the free rotation of thefirst numeral wheel, a nonarticulated zero resetting control push-lever,said lever being provided with a plurality of juxtaposed teeth incooperating relation with the said heart cams and provided with twolateral arms which are integral therewith and adapted to cooperate witha secondary shaft carrying transfer pinions, the complete assemblymaking it possible against the action of a spring and under the actionof a single manual pressure on said push-lever in a first stage toeffect the disengagement of the transfer pinions and to maintain saidpinions in an angular position, in a second stage to release said firstnumeral wheel by positioning said escapement anchor in a position inwhich it permits the free rotation of said first numeral wheel, and in athird stage to bring the heart cams to the zero position while there-engagement of the anchor and of the transfer pinions is carried outat the same time when pressure is no longer applied to the push-lever.2. An impulse counter according to claim 1 which Includes a toothedescape wheel integral with said first numeral wheel and directlyactuated by said anchor for moving the said first numeral wheel.